The ACT Heritage Council provides the following conservation objective and policy elements for the hedges in Garden City Heritage Precincts in the ACT and the Tocumwal Housing Precinct.

The Garden City Heritage Precincts in the ACT are:

1. Barton Housing Precinct
2. Braddon Housing Precinct
3. Corroboree Park Housing Precinct
4. Wakefield Gardens Housing Precinct
5. Alt Crescent Housing Precinct
6. Early Canberra Brickworks Housing Precinct
7. Blandfordia 4 Precinct, Forrest
8. Blandfordia 5 Housing Precinct
9. Forrest Housing Precinct
10. Kingston/Griffith Housing Precinct
11. Red Hill Precinct
12. Reid Housing Precinct

There are heritage guidelines for many registered heritage places in the ACT. This policy does not override those guidelines.

Advice on changes to existing hedges and planting of front and side boundary hedges may be obtained from the ACT Heritage Unit or from the ACT Heritage Advisory Service. Specific requirements for hedges within individual precincts can be found in the entry into the ACT Heritage Register for each Garden City precinct. Please contact the Heritage Unit on 13 22 81 for further information.

Although this policy is not mandatory, it represents the best practice for heritage conservation, endorsed by the ACT Heritage Council, and it will be used by the Council when providing advice on proposed changes.

Conservation Objective

To conserve the original hedge patterns separating public from private domain and ‘framing’ the view of each dwelling and its front garden.

Hedges form a significant component of the heritage values of the Garden City Precincts and the Tocumwal Housing Precinct. The important hedges are generally those on both the front and side boundaries.

Policy Elements

The future for hedges and specific impacts of changes to hedges should be considered in the light of the following:

1. Existing hedges that are not ‘Environmental Weeds’ as listed in Pest Plants and Animals Declaration 2009(1) should be maintained.
2. Existing hedges of species that are ‘Environmental Weeds’ as listed in Pest Plants and Animals Declaration 2009 (No 1) should be replaced with non-weed species or maintained to minimise environmental issues.
3. The re-planting of original hedges no longer present along front boundaries and side boundaries forward of the building line is encouraged.
4. Installation of new hedges or replacements should reflect the original hedge plantings if possible.
5. Hedges should be pruned to achieve a height of 1.2 metres above adjacent ground level measured from the verge side of the boundary. Most hedge species require regular pruning to maintain a height of 1.2 metres.
6. All hedges should be evergreen.
7. Suitable Hedge Species include